1. THAT THE PEOPLE SHALL BE INFORMED
F R I D A Y , D E C E M B E R 2 6
KUENSEL
Tshering Dorji
The country’s trade deficit
as of October has already
surpassed the 2013 figures
indicating that the trade
imbalance could increase
by the yearend.
Trade deficit decreased
by Nu 3.2B in 2013 com-
pared with 2012, but the
provisional trade statistics
with figures compiled be-
tween January until mid-
October this year reveals a
deficit of Nu 22.9B already.
Last year, the deficit was
Nu 21.42B according to the
Bhutan Trade Statistics.
In 2013 the country
exported goods worth Nu
31.8BagainstNu53.3Bspent
onimports.Thisincludesthe
electricity trade. In 2012, the
deficit was Nu 24.6B.
Economists attribute
thedeclineintradedeficitin
2013 to the economic slow
down following the rupee
shortage and various re-
strictionsimposedoncredit
and import. For instance,
housing and construction
activities almost came to a
haltwiththerestrictionson
housing loan until Septem-
ber this year.
However, most of the
restrictions, including the
vehicle import, was lifted
and this could contribute
to the deficit. Import sta-
tistics show that while Nu
547Mworthofvehicleswere
imported in 2013, the figure
has jumped to Nu 724M
untilOctoberthisyearsince
the restriction was lifted in
July.
Electricity trade played
a crucial role in narrowing
the deficit. The trade statis-
tics,2013,showthatwithout
the consideration of elec-
tricity export, the country’s
tradedeficitremainedatNu
32.4B.
Bhutan earned Nu
11.2Bfromelectricityexport
to India, which narrowed
the deficit from Nu 25.9B to
Nu 14.9B. But the country
has also imported Nu 222M
worth of electricity during
lean seasons, last year.
Pg. 2
Trade deficit cross
2013 level by mid
October
Fund raising show
» A fund raising event for Bhutan Kidney Foundation begins today from 4pm at the Youth
Development Fund hall in Thimphu. The two-day charity show will have singers, bands and
students come together to perform and raise funds for the foundation.
DZONGKHAG
» Bhutanese
shoppers go online
| PG.5
DZONGKHAG
» Depleting water
sources reported
in 12 gewogs of
Trashigang
| PG. 9
IN BRIEF  WHAT’S INSIDE 
Special escort for teachers
on evaluation duty
Smokey:
(Story on Pg. 12)
The trade
statistics, 2013,
show that
without the
consideration
of electricity
export, the
country’s trade
deficit remained
at Nu 32.4B
Yangchen C Rinzin,
Samdrupjongkhar
A special escort provided by the
Indian police to the economic af-
fairs minister was also extended
to more than 100 teachers from
the eastern districts today morn-
ing to ensure that they reached
Phuentsholing on time to report
for evaluation of board examina-
tion papers.
They leave Samdrupjongkhar
at 6am.
The Phuentsholing bound
teachers were stranded for more
than four days in Samdrupkong-
khar when a 36 hours strike was
called on December 24 following
the ethnic violence in Sonitpur
and Kokrajhar in Assam.
According to information pro-
vided to the Royal Bhutan Police
by the Indian police in the adja-
cent border Darranga, a 12 - hour
strike has been declared today by
the AASA and ATTSA.
The strike was called to pro-
test against the killing of “Adivashi
community people” in the recent
Assam Ethnic Violence, which
according to Indian media saw
more than 70 people killed by the
suspected Bodo militants.
The teachers were given
escort after they requested the
minister for assistance to reach
Phuentsholing today to start the
evaluation tomorrow. The min-
ister was returning from his con-
stituency visit.
Pg. 2
Indian police agreed to escort the teachers along with the MoEA minister from
Samdrupjongkhar to Phuentsholing
ECONOMY
SECURITY

2. HOMEPAGE 2 KUENSEL | Friday, December 26, 2014
TO ADVERTISE IN KUENSEL:
Call 326191 or fax 326638; or email
us at advertisement@kuensel.com.bt
Dairy produce
Vegetable products
Tobacco and
manufactured tobacco
substitute
Textile and textile
article
Machineries
and mechanical
appliances
Vehicles
Rowing boat
Chemical and allied
industrial products
Mineral products
991.3M
2.85B
301,203
470.2M
5.5B
724.1M
2.05M
1.5B
10.6B
2.87M
924M
277.4M
15,000
1.57B
3.63B
Import from India
Bhutan trade statistics (provisional)
January- October 15, 2014 (Figures in Nu)
Export to India
From Pg.1
Past trends indicate that
starting October until Feb-
ruary, the country would
experience a lean hydro-
power season urging the
country to import power
from India. Provided that
this year’s trade statistics
include figure until Octo-
ber, the export are not likely
to sprout substantially.
On the other hand, the
country has spent Nu 8.1B
in importing petroleum
products, last year. This
means that every month
Nu 0.67M is spent on fuel
and in the remaining two
and half months this year,
it would amount to at least
Nu 1.7M roughly.
Experts point out that
the energy balance of trade
is likely to experience a nar-
row margin of surplus.
Meanwhile, import of
vegetable products from
India, last year stood at Nu
3.2 B while export was just
Nu 976M. This year, until
mid-October, vegetable im-
port from India decreased
to Nu 2.85B while export
hovered around Nu 924M.
While Bhutan’s import
from China was about Nu
1B, its exports to China was
recorded at Nu 1.5M.
Similarly, imports from
Thailand also stood at Nu
1B with just Nu 28M worth
of export.
Bangladesh has always
been a country with which
Bhutan has surplus trade
balance. Last year, Bhutan’s
import from Bangladesh
stood at around Nu 161M
whereas exports was about
Nu 1.4B. Bangladesh is Bhu-
tan’s top importer besides
India.
Trade deficit
cross 2013
level by mid
October
(Waste and scrap of
primary cells, etc.)
Source: MoF
From Pg.1
Tashitse high school’s
vice principal Sonam Jigme
said they learned that the
strike would be lifted by
Thursday evening but that
didn’t happen.
“We had decided that if
special escort was not pos-
sible then we would take the
National Highway,” he said.
“But we are now happy that
we would reach on time be-
cause of the assistance from
the dzongda, Indian Embassy
and the minister.”
Another teacher, Yeshi
Dorji from Rangjung High
School said they had earlier
requested Samdrupjongkhar
police if they could provide
special escort to ensure they
reached Phuentsholing on
time.
“They tried their best to
help but it was out of their
jurisdiction,” he said. “There
is a need for special escort
during emergencies from the
government in future.”
Samdrupjongkhar dzong-
da Gholing Tshering said the
escort was only for those trav-
elling to Phuentsholing. The
gate would remain close for
those bound for Nganglam,
Gelephu and Jomotsangkha.
“The escort is only for
the minister and after sev-
eral requests, teachers were
also accommodated with the
minister,” dzongda said. “But
there will be no special escort
for other travellers and will
have to wait until they call off
the strike.”
More than 90 vehicles
had to return from Samdrup-
jongkhar border gate when
the gate was closed after the
strike.
With such continuous
strikes, many residents in
Nganglam and Jomotsangkha
said, this is a call for a Na-
tional Highway and that the
government should be proac-
tive to have its own road.
There are no alternative
routes for the two dungkhags,
although, Nganglam is con-
nected with a feeder road in
Pemagatshel, which accord-
ing to the people isn’t pliable
for small vehicles.
Many residents including
officials, gups and tshogpas
from Nganglam, who had
returned from Pemagatshel
after attending His Majesty’s
recent visit, are stranded in
Samdrupjongkhar for the last
three days.
The strike ends at 5pm
today.
Special escort for
teachers...
Closed: The Samdrupjongkhar
border gate

3. Friday, December 26, 2014 | KUENSEL
HOMEPAGE 3
Kinga Dema and Dechen
Tshomo
Contrary to the Bhutanese
tourism industry’s value for
more number of nights a
tourist spends in the country,
the focus should be on their
spending pattern instead to
judge the tourism sector’s
performance.
This is how Singaporean
tourism expert Barkathun
Nisha highlighted the impor-
tance of revenue from tourism
at the tour operators’ induc-
tion program yesterday in
Thimphu.
Barkathun Nisha said
tour operators shouldn’t
worry about the duration but
make visitors spend. “Give
them the experience so that
visitors are willing to spend by
providing value for money,”
she told tour operators.
Since Bhutan charges a
daily minimum tariff to tour-
ists, the revenue is calculated
based on the number of
nights a tourist spends in the
country.
“Bhutan is a brand in it-
self, not just a country,” Bar-
kathun Nisha said, adding
which is why tour operators
should take advantage of it by
selling it as a premium desti-
nation and not fighting for a
few dollars less.
She urged tour opera-
tors not to undercut but to
increase the cost by creating
a premium for a wonderful
experience in Bhutan.
Citing examples of Sin-
gapore and Malaysia, Bar-
kathun Nisha said a tourist
spends about 2.5 nights, on
an average, in Singapore and
about seven to nine nights in
Malaysia. However, in terms
of revenue from tourism,
Singapore earns about USD
24M annually from some 15M
visitors while Malaysia earns,
about USD 30B from about
25M visitors.
“Tourists spend three
times more in Singapore than
in Malaysia although they stay
for a shorter duration,” she
said.
The three-day tour op-
erators’ induction program,
organised by the Tourism
Council of Bhutan (TCB),
also focuses on quality serv-
ices, tourism marketing and
way forward besides innova-
tive package development.
TCB officials said the
program was organised
following feedback from
stakeholders in the wake of
increasing tour operators,
tourist arrivals and global
competition.
Speaking about the dif-
ferent types of travellers in
the world, Barkathun Nisha
also emphasised the need to
target each source market by
understanding the traveller’s
psyche. Young professionals,
also known as the millennial,
rising millionaires, unstop-
pable elders, and people who
are interested in creative, cu-
linary, holistic wellness and
green tourism were some of
them.
Reaching out to the
younger generation who
earns to spend, known as
the millennials, comprising
young professionals who earn
a lot by their mid twenties, she
said was equally important
as targeting the elderly who
travel for leisure.
Tour operators were also
briefed on developing attrac-
tive tourist packages and the
importance of creating loyal
clients by providing excel-
lent quality experiences and
superior value for money by
ensuring that all aspects of
visitor experience are well
coordinated.
Barkathun Nisha told
tour operators that global
records show that despite
increasing wealth in China
and other Asian countries,
travellers from US, Japan
and Europe will continue to
dominate luxury travel space
through 2020.
“Records also show a ris-
ing number of millionaires
in India, China, Indonesia
and Singapore which Bhu-
tanese tour operators must
bear in mind,” she said.
Of the 116,209 tourists
who visited Bhutan last year,
about 52,783 were interna-
tional tourists, records with
TCB show. The tourism in-
dustry recorded gross earn-
ings of USD 63.5M last year
from USD 62.8M in 2012.
The average length of
stay of international visi-
tors last year, according to
TCB, stood at 6.85 days, a
slight decrease from 2012
that recorded 6.90 days. The
decline was attributed to the
increase in arrivals from top
Asian markets that visit for
shorter durations.
However, European
markets continued to have
longer average stays be-
tween nine to 11 days.
Among the international
market, Americans beat the
Japanese to reemerge as the
top market with 6,927 visi-
tors compared to 4,015 Japa-
nese last year. For the first
time, China emerged as the
second top market clocking
4,764 visitors. The country,
however, recorded a drop in
arrivals from European mar-
kets such as Germany, UK,
and France by about four,
seven, and 15 percent.
Value tourist’s spending pattern,
not duration of stay
About 50 of the 1,300 tour operators are attending the induction program
TOURISM
Tour operators should sell Bhutan as a premium destination instead of undercutting
“Bhutan is a
brand in itself,
not just a
country,”
Barkathun Nisha

4. PAGE 4
PERSPECTIVES
KUENSEL | Friday, December 26, 2014
MANAGING DIRECTOR - Bachu Phub Dorji, MANAGING EDITOR - Ugyen Penjor, DEPUTY MANAGING DIRECTOR - Thinley Dorji,
CHIEF PHOTOGRAPHER - Karma Dupchu, PRINTING GM - Karma Nima, CIRCULATION MANAGER - Ugyen Norbu, KANGLUNG REGIONAL MANAGER - Ugyen Wangdi
Send your letters and pictures to
news@kuensel.com.bt
Letters will be edited for space and clarity
MY COUNTRY, MY TOWN
A fiery issue
T
himphu witnessed its first major forest fire
yesterday when a fire that started opposite
Bap lhakhang, on the outskirts of the city,
spread over the Kuenselphodrang within
hours. Fortunately, the fire fighting team
brought it under control before it caused a massive damage
and spread towards the city.
Those of us watching the smoke engulf the city skyline
got a fright. With the strong afternoon wind fanning it, the
fire could have gone anywhere. It did spread towards and
threatened the Buddha statue. The efforts of the foresters,
the armed force, desuups and other volunteers prevented
it.
But this is only a temporary relief. Thimphu, like many
other dzongkhags is dry making it prone to forest fire. The
thick and dry undergrowth provides the perfect ground
for a massive fire that is very common in winter around
the country. In some dzongkhags forest fire have burnt
houses, even claimed lives besides damaging community
infrastructure like irrigation facility.
If it is difficult to contain forest fire that leaves a huge
toll on the forest cover, it is more challenging to prevent
it. The agriculture ministry has tried almost everything –
from levying hefty fines to appointing mesups (sentinel)
to creating awareness. Recognising education as the best
approach, the ministry spends hundreds of thousands of
ngultrums on advertisement and campaigns. Yet, forest fire
is a common sight every winter across the country.
Interestingly, the fires are usually caused by the same
predictable factors like burning debris or children playing
with matches besides natural causes like lightning in the
south. Other common causes are picnickers and campers
not extinguishing fire after they leave the spot.
The winter has just started and for the next three to four
months, we will see smoke rising from the hills. And it is
not only forest fires. Our neighbourhood, especially in an
urban setting is at a bigger risk from fire. Despite stringent
rules, hutments and temporary settlements are abundant
in the city. These settlements are the ones that usually
suffer from fires. One day it will make us rue our decisions
of not being able to relocate them.
In case of a fire or a forest fire reaching settlement,
the devastation would be worse. The once lush paddy
fields have turned into congested settlements. The city’s
population has increased by manifolds and activities are
numerous. Besides the fire fighting force with the police,
there are not many plans to consider the risk of fire. The
outskirt of the city is a thick dry forest.
Preventing fires, both natural or man made, should
be a collective responsibility. It is the best approach and
could start from homes. Most fires in the vicinity of the city
are caused by negligence or irresponsibility. Quite often it
is attributed to children playing with matchboxes, like in
yesterday’s fire.
Meanwhile, as the city expands and settlement mush-
rooms, thereat from fires deserves better attention. Per-
haps, it is time to draft a fire Act. From experience, harping
on the need of basic common sense and awareness has
not helped much.
MY SAY
Idea: Who needs a
microwave oven when
the heater can warm you
and your cake
Photo by Janga Bdr RDC.
Importance of choekey
and its essence
Sir,
This is with regard to the
Kuensel article, ‘Bhutanese
learn choekey…from a Japa-
nese’ of the December 3 issue.
It is my great honor and I
am thankful to the Japanese
professor for providing free
choekey classes in Bhutan.
At the same time, it’s embar-
rassing that most Bhutanese
are not interested in learning
choekey from which our na-
tional language originated.
I can see where choekey
stands in future. Our children
will even drop this subject if
they have an option. Gradu-
ally lesser youth will learn it.
I know my father and great
grand fathers were lucky
enough to have got the op-
portunity to learn choekey
and basis of Dzongkha such
as ngagdren and sumtag
module. Today, only few good
teachers know choekey and
teach us in school as part of
the new curriculum in Dzong-
kha.
I hope government is
looking into the matter and
I also feel our parents at
home need to realize the
importance of choekey and its
essence.
I fear that in the coming
years we might even have to
take special free or paid class-
es from foreigners to learn
our own language. Many
more impacts are foreseen
and it could be more than
what meets the eyes!
A concerned citizen

5. DZONGKHAG
PAGE 5Friday, December 26, 2014 | KUENSEL
Dawa Gyelmo, Haa
With broken pavements and
water leaking at several parts
of the pothole-ridden road,
driving around Haa town has
become a frustrating task for
residents and commuters.
Despitebeingasmalltown,
thetownneverhadagoodroad
and the one it has become
today with poodles and pot-
holes cries for maintenance.
“With no proper street-
lights, it has become risky to
walkaroundthetownatnight,”
a Haa resident said.
Residentscomplainedthat
the existing town where most
of the residents stay doesn’t
have a proper street lighting
while the area where the new
town was planned remains
well lit despite there being no
housing.
Haa dzongda Sonam
Wangdi said several portions
of the 1.5kms internal road of
thetownwereinneedofmain-
tenance and to be resurfaced,
for which the works have been
contracted out.
Officials said the works
however came to a halt due to
Haa’s harsh winter. But works
would resume once the cold
season is over. They said the
water leakages on the road
were due to the broken pipe-
lines that were fitted beneath
the road.
During the time of road
construction, the contrac-
tors without maintaining the
pipelines underneath the road
went ahead with the road con-
struction,becauseofwhichthe
problem has become persist-
ent, officials said.
Dzongda Sonam Wangdi
saidthedzongkhagisplanning
to dig up the pipelines and
maintain the leakages when
the weather turns warm.
The road connecting IM-
TRAT to Wangcha would be
maintainedthroughtheKatsha
gewog’s gewog development
grant of Nu 2M, next year.
Dzongkhag officials also
said that while there are no
plans to widen any of the two
highways connecting the dis-
trict,itsmainhighwayof72kms
throughChunzomwouldsoon
get repaired by project DAN
TAK.
Meanwhile, officials said
that the town’s street light-
ing was repaired last year by
spending about Nu 500,000.
Today, most stand broken, just
as the public toilets located at
the Sunday market area.
Following such cases,
the dozngkhag administra-
tion started giving announce-
ments on a local cable asking
residents to report if they see
anyone breaking or damaging
public properties.
Rajesh Rai, Phuentsholing
With less than a week left for
the New Year, a Phuentshol-
ing resident, Tshewang has
already started to prepare
for the day.
She has bought a new
dress for the occasion. But
what’s different this time is
the mode of shopping. The
dress was ordered from an
online shopping site.
“I ordered it about a
week ago,” the corporate
worker, who is also a regular
online shopper, said.
Some five months since a
courier company, Blue Dart
in Jaigaon started to deliver
goods ordered online, the
shopping system has got
the attention of every Bhuta-
nese in Phuentsholing town
today.
Every evening after 5,
the Bhutanese start crowd-
ing at a small store in one of
the lanes of NS Road. From
kitchen utensils to furniture,
it has become a trend for
Phuentsholing residents to
shop online.
A businessman, Vishwa-
deep said online shopping is
a growing trend.
“I also bought online,”
he said, adding that the last
order he made was a sun-
glass.
Today people are also
buying winter clothes and
while many are buying any
types of products online,
there are also a few who only
buy goods that are not avail-
able in both Phuentsholing
Winter chills Haa’s road
maintenance works
Bhutanese shoppers
go online
Waiting: Residents from both Phuentsholing and Jaigaon at the online product
delivery center
ROAD
PURCHASE
Bhutanese orders make up almost 60 percent of the daily shipment
and Jaigaon.
Despite searching every
shop in the two bordering
towns, Norbu Gyeltshen
said he couldn’t find a gui-
tar tutorial. “A friend of mine
suggested to try online,” he
said. “I found it instantly and
made the order.”
Officials with the Blue
Dart said the online market
has been increasing every-
day. Its owner, Bikash Chhetri
said they receive about 700
shipments a day.
“About 60 percent are
Bhutanese orders,” he said,
mentioning that Blue Dart
didn’t take commission for
deliveries. “Transportation is
free of cost.”
Since the online deliver-
ies are not made in Phuent-
sholing, Bhutanese buyers
give the address of the Blue
Dart, where their orders are
received. The Blue Dart staff
then call and inform the Bhu-
tanese buyers.
Bikash Chhetri said
most Bhutanese order on-
line because they could buy
products not available in the
towns. Discount offers and
cheaper price tags are other
reasons. “Including Thim-
phu, we have customers from
as far as Bumthang,” Bikash
Chhetri said.
Although online shop-
ping has attracted a fast-in-
creasing market with the resi-
dents of Phuentsholing, there
are also instances where
shoppers were left helpless
at the delivery counter.
Many buyers told Kuensel
that they didn’t get the prod-
ucts they had ordered online.
There were also cases where
packages were replaced with
duplicate or dummy items,
instead of the original or-
dered online. Also, not every-
one is happy with the quality
of the products bought.
A teacher in Paro recently
bought an electric blanket for
Rs 1,199.
“It is useless and I gave
a bad feedback online,” she
said.

6. PAGE 6
In the wake of deadly attacks in
AssambytheoutlawedNDFB(S)
militants, the government is be-
lievedtohaveorderedanall-out
actionagainstthemilitantgroup.
As per highly-placed sourc-
es, Union Home Minister Ra-
jnath Singh – who is in Assam
to take stock of the situation on
a day when the toll in militant
attacksandsubsequentviolence
roseto78–hasissueda‘discreet
order’ to security agencies to
eliminate the top leadership
of anti-talk Songbijit faction of
the National Democratic Front
of Bodoland (NDFB) in two
months.
Sourcessaythegovernment
is of the view that such orders
should have been issued by the
Assam government long ago
when intelligence inputs had
been received about possible
NDFB(S)attacksinthestate.
According to sources, a
series of intelligence inputs on
possible militant strikes were
passed on to the Assam govern-
ment between September and
December. However, the state
government failed to act on the
inputs.
The development came
hours after Rajnath said in a
toughmessagethatstrongaction
will be taken against NDFB(S),
asserting that the Centre has
“zero tolerance” policy for such
“craftedterror”.
“We will take strong meas-
ures to deal with the outfit and
willcontroliteffectively,”hetold
reporters at Biswanath Chariali
in Sonitpur district during his
visittoreviewthesituationinthe
state, which has been rocked by
thebloodbathbyBodomilitants
and retaliatory violence by Adi-
vasis.
Asked about operations
against the outfit, the minister
said, “Operations will definitely
be launched against the outfit
butcannotsaywhen”.
Militants killed a total of 71
people -- 43 in Sonitpur, 25 in
Kokrajhar and three in Chirang
districtintheTuesdaymassacre.
Inretaliatoryattacksbyadivasis,
four Bodos were killed while
three adivasis were killed alleg-
edly in police firing on violent
protesters.
zeenews.india.com
REGIONKUENSEL Friday, December 26, 2014
TO ADVERTISE IN KUENSEL:
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Sale: Shop near PNB
Bank. Contact 17852418.
Vacancy: Temporary
office assistant for 6
months. Contact 02-
336878.
Vacancy: Immediately
required 2 security guards
(male). Preference will be
given to ex-army. Contact
17421298/77770000.
Vacancy: Laundry boy
at Shoe Vival, Salary
4,500 per month. Contact
77398329.
Sale: Hi-design bags
& Titan watches at
20% discount from 23rd
December at Kushu
Enterprise, main town
Thimphu.
Available: Civil
engineer with masters
degree having 15 years
experience. Contact
17562046.
Announcement:
Norling laundry is
changing its management
w.e.f January 1, 2015.
Therefore, all our
customers are requested
to collect your laundries
within fifteen days from
today. Failure to which, we
will not be responsible for
any inconvenience caused.
CLASSIFIED
*Prices as of yesterday
(In Nu)
Dzongkhag Diesel Petrol Kerosene LPG
Thimphu (DPCL) 53.14 61.72 15.35 491
P/Ling (Damchen) 51.45 59.79 13.86 456
Fuel Prices
DrukAir
Date Route Flight No. Departure Arrival
December 27 Bangkok to Paro via Gaya KB 123 07:20 am 11:00 am
December 27 Paro to Bangkok via Bagdogra KB 130 11:40 am 04:35 pm
December 27 Paro to Bangkok KB 150 03:40 pm 07:40 pm
December 27 Paro to Singapore via Kolkata KB 500 07:20 am 03:40 pm
December 27 Paro to Delhi KB 204 09:10 am 11:00 am
December 27 Delhi to Paro KB 205 12:00 pm 02:50 pm
December 27 Paro to Kathmandu KB 400 07:40 am 08:45 am
December 27 Kathmandu to Paro KB 401 09:25 am 11:00 am
Domestic
December 27 Paro to Bumthang KB 1001 11:30 am 12:05 pm
December 27 Bumthang to Paro KB 1002 12:30 pm 01:05 pm
Bhutan Airlines (Tashi Air)
December 27 Bangkok to Paro via Kolkata B3701 06:30 am 09:55 am
December 27 Paro to Bangkok via Kolkata B3700 10:45 am 04:15 pm
Note : All timings in local. Timings are subject to change. Call Drukair toll free No. 1300 for latest flight information.
FLIGHTS
Note : All timings in local. Timings are subject to change. Call Bhutan Airlines toll free No. 1234 for latest flight information.
Assam govt ignored intel inputs
on NDFB(S) attacks
Tribal women throw flowers on the funeral pyre during mass cremation in
Tinsuti village in Sonitpur district of Assam

7. daffynition
ecotip
riddlemeree
todayinhistory
quotefortheday
happybirthday
featheredfriend
1Q4u
infobyte
beaupeep
Sudoku
lastword
“That was a great
game of golf, fellers.”
BING Crosby190377
How to play
Fill in the grid
so that every
row, every
column, and
every 3 X 3
box contains
the numbers 1
through 9.
LAST SOLUTION
DIVERSIONFriday, December 26, 2014 | KUENSEL PAGE 7
Harry Lillis “Bing”
Crosby, Jr. (May
3, 1903 – October
14, 1977) was an
American singer
and actor. Crosby’s
trademark bass-
baritone voice
made him one of
the best-selling
recording artists of
the 20th century,
with over half a
billion records in
circulation.
A multimedia star, from 1934 to 1954 Crosby
was a leader in record sales, radio ratings,
and motion picture grosses.
His early career coincided with technical
recording innovations; this allowed him to
develop a laid-back, intimate singing style
that influenced many of the popular male
singers who followed him, including Perry
Como, Frank Sinatra, and Dean Martin.
Crosby won an Academy Award for Best
Actor for his role as Father Chuck O’Malley
in the 1944 motion picture Going My Way.
diatonic [Music]
liquid poison
The Big Apple
MEANING Nickname for New York, USA
ORIGIN John J Fitz Gerald, a horse-racing writer for the New York
Morning Telegraph in the '20s, used the phrase with reference to
NYC in his ‘Around the Big Apple’, piece on February 18, 1924.
the emotional riddle
q: I can bring tears to your eyes;
resurrect the dead, make you smile, and
reverse time. I form in an instant but I last a life time. What am I?
a: A memory!
1865
James H Mason (Massachusetts)
patents first US coffee percolator.
LARS
Ulrich
1963
Metallica Drummer
“The longer and more carefully we look
at a funny story, the sadder it becomes.”
Nikolai Gogol1809-52
Gould’s
Sunbird
(Aethopyga
gouldiae)
Found in the
subcontinent's
northeast, China
and the Far East
Go Green
makeover leftover - eggs
Scramble a few with some
cooked rice and second-act
shrimp, and you don’t have to leave home for Chinese takeout.
Which is heavier: hot or cold water?
Both.Accordingto
Einstein’stheory,howis
heavier.AsperCWit’scold.
KUENSEL
TO ADVERTISE
call 326191 or
fax 326638;
email: advertisement@kuensel.
com.bt
TO SUBSCRIBE
call 327463
FOR NEWS call
324684/322483
NU. PER UNITS OF FOREIGN
CURRENCY
as of yesterday
NOTES
Buy Sell
US $ 62.45 64.50
POUND 97.10 99.80
EURO 76.15 78.30
YEN (100) 51.85 53.30
HK $ 8.05 8.25
AUS $ 50.70 52.05
SING $ 47.15 48.50
Courtesy BNB

8. KUENSEL | Friday, December 26, 2014
WORLD
PAGE 8
TO ADVERTISE IN KUENSEL:
Call 326191 or fax 326638; or email us at
advertisement@kuensel.com.bt;
TO SUBSCRIBE: call 327463.
Cash grab in Hong Kong as millions
in banknotes spill from security van
Last minute shoppers in
Hong Kong were treated to
a Christmas Eve cash grab
Wednesday when nearly $2
million spilled from a money
transport van into the street.
Passing motorists and
pedestrians were caught on
camera helping themselves
to banknotes scattered in
Gloucester Road in the city’s
Wan Chai district at around
lunchtime, before police ar-
rived to secure the loot and
disperse the opportunists.
Three cash boxes had
fallen from the van, result-
ing in the loss of an estimated
15.23 million Hong Kong dol-
lars (nearly $2 million U.S.),
a police said Thursday, warn-
ing that anyone who took the
notes faced theft charges.
What happened next is
surprising.
By Thursday afternoon,
police said, nearly half a
million of the missing ban-
knotes -- HKD $3.6 million,
or $464,000 -- had been re-
turned to authorities.
Thirteen people -- 10
men and three women -- had
voluntarily handed over the
money. They would likely
face no charges, police said.
The security company
that operates the cash trans-
port van, G4S, told CNN it
had no comment on the in-
cident. Local media reported
that a faulty van door was
blamed for the spill.
CNN
If you curl up under the duvet
with an e-book for a bedtime
read then you are damag-
ing your sleep and maybe
your health, US doctors have
warned.
A team from Harvard
Medical School compared
reading paper books and
light-emitting e-readers be-
fore sleep.
They found it took longer
to nod off with a back-lit e-
reader, which led to poorer
quality sleep and being more
tired the next morning.
Original Kindle readers
do not emit light so should
be fine, say experts.
Experts said people
should minimise light-expo-
sure in the evening.
Whether you are perusing
the Man Booker shortlist or
leafing through Zoella, the
impact of reading on your
sleep is probably the last
thing on your mind.
But there has been grow-
ing concern about the dan-
gers of light before bedtime.
Our bodies are kept in
tune with the rhythm of day
and night by an internal body
clock, which uses light to tell
the time.
But blue light, the wave-
length common in smart-
phones, tablets and LED
lighting, is able to disrupt the
body clock.
Blue light in the evening
can slow or prevent the pro-
duction of the sleep hormone
melatonin.
Twelve people were
locked in a sleep laboratory
for two weeks.
They spent five days read-
ing from a paperback and five
days from an iPad.
Regular blood samples
showed the production of
the sleep hormone melatonin
was reduced by reading an e-
book.
People also took longer
to fall asleep, had less deep
sleep and were more tired the
next morning.
The researchers said other
e-readers such as the Nook
and Kindle Fire produced
similar wavelengths of light
and would have the same
impact.
The findings were pub-
lished in the journal Proceed-
ings of the National Academy
of Sciences.
Lead researcher Prof
Charles Czeisler said: “The
light emitted by most e-read-
ers is shining directly into the
eyes of the reader, whereas
from a printed book or the
original Kindle, the reader is
only exposed to reflected light
from the pages of the book.”
He said disrupting sleep
in turn affected health.
“Sleep deficiency has
been shown to increase the
risk of cardiovascular disease,
metabolic diseases like obes-
ity and diabetes, and cancer.
“Thus, the melatonin sup-
pression that we saw in this
study among participants
when they were reading from
the light-emitting e-reader
concerns us.”
Dr Victoria Revell, who re-
searches the impact of light
on the body at the University
of Surrey, said: “This is a very
good study and I think it’s re-
ally interesting.
“We should be advising
people to minimise their
[light-emitting e-reader] use
in the evening, particularly
teenagers who are a group
that are using their phones
and tablets late in to the
evening.”
Teenagers naturally have a
late body clock, which makes
them slow to rise in the morn-
ing and up late at night.
“People who already have
a delayed body clock are
delaying themselves much
further and that is a very im-
portant message,” Dr Revell
added.
Prof Czeisler agreed, say-
ing there was “special con-
cern” for teenagers who were
already sleep deficient by
being forced to get up early
for school.
BBC
E-books ‘damage sleep and
health,’ doctors warn
HEALTH

9. Friday, December 26, 2014 | KUENSEL
DZONGKHAG
PAGE 9
Tshering Wangdi, Trashigang
Depleting water sources and
absence of concrete solution
in most gewogs of Trashigang
has left farmers worried even
as the dzongkhag administra-
tion is surveying the situation.
Although the gewogs are
trying out various preventive
measures, gups said the situ-
ation only worsened over the
years.
About 12 gewogs have re-
ported drying of water sources
in the villages, records with
the dzongkhag show, with the
highest incidence reported
from Lumang, Bartsham and
Yangnyer gewogs.
Six water sources in
Taktapa in Yangnyer have
completely dried. Villagers
of Changzey, Lungdama and
Demkhar no longer receive
the same volume of water they
used to. Sources at Kangpar
and Bedengphu in Kangpara
gewog have also dried up
completely.
With the water source in
Pam drying up, shortage of
water is a prominent issue in
the community today. Sam-
khar gup Sonam Dorji said
they fenced a water source at
Yenangbrangsa in Bikhar with
barbwires and also planted
trees to prevent it from drying.
“We will soon fence two
other water sources at Bikhar
goenpa and Mebiri,” he said.
Survey on a newly identified
water source for Pam in Bam-
ridrang is also expected to
start soon. “Or else, the issue
of water shortage would only
worsen.”
Without a water source
nearby, Kosphu goenpa vil-
lagers in Lumang gewog walk
A Himalayan Black Bear,
which was trapped in a cable
snare in Zabasa village in in
Kabisa, Punakha was rescued
and released unhurt into the
wild on December 23.
The female bear, which
weighed 88 kgs and is about
five to six years old is the ninth
bear the Wildlife Rescue and
Animal Health Section of the
Wildlife Conservation Divi-
sion has rescued, released and
rehabilitated to date this year.
She was trapped around
2am on December 23 in a
snare that a farmer, Ap Wangdi
had set to protect his calves
and chickens from being
preyed by the bear which had
been frequenting his farm.
Ap Wangdi had informed the
forestry extension office in
Kabisa.
Depleting water sources reported
in 12 gewogs of Trashigang
Himalayan Black Bear released
A drying brook at Yangnyer gewog (file photo)
WATER
for almost two hours to fetch
water from a stream. With
the source located below
the village, pipes couldn’t be
connected. Over the years,
the stream started to dry up
along with other sources in the
gewog.
Lumang gup Tandin
Wangchuk said they have
plans to tap water to the vil-
lage all the way from Kharun-
gla. “But it is going to cost
about Nu 0.4M because of
which there hasn’t been much
progress so far,” he said.
Similarly, another water
source at Bepam chiwog in
Udzorong dried up last year.
The gewog has established
four new sources to meet the
water demand in the villages.
“At present, 90 percent of
the gewog have access to water
but drying up of sources still
remains an issue,” Udzorong
gup, Tenzin Tshewang said.
In Bidung, about 10 per-
cent of the fields are left fal-
low for want of water. Water
sources are becoming smaller
despite conservation efforts in
full swing.
“Sources are drying up
naturally which could be due
to the effects of global warm-
ing,“ Bidung gup, Dorji Wang-
chuk said. “In such a scenario,
it won’t take long before vil-
lagers start migrating to other
places.”
Meanwhile, the survey
undertaken by the dzongkhag
is expected to provide infor-
mation on different types of
water sources in Trashigang
andwhythesourcesaredrying
up to enable the dzongkhag to
take preventive measures.
“In such a
scenario, it
won’t take long
before villagers
start migrating
to other places.”
Dorji Wangchuk
Bidung Gup
Photo and info courtesy - www.moaf.gov.bt

10. KUENSEL | Friday, December 26, 2014
ADVERTISEMENTPAGE 10
ANNOUNCEMENT
BHUTAN BASKETBALL
FEDERATION, THIMPHU
BBF/AFD/2014/377
Bhutan Basketball Federation will be conducting
winter BhutanYouth Basketball (BYB) atThimphu and
Phuentsholing from January 3, 2015 till January 16,
2015. Therefore interested participants may register
for above program.
For details contact: Thimphu 17269572 and for
Phuentsholing- 17609622 during office hours or log on
to bhutanolympiccommittee.org for registration
form. General Secretary
NOTICE INVITING TENDER
DUNGSAM CEMENT
CORPORATION LIMITED
Nganglam
NIT No. DCCL/Procurement/07/2014/3756
DCCL invites sealed bids from eligible bidders for the
handling of Gelephu and Phuentsholing Depots.
Bids shall be received in sealed envelopes on or before
3.00 pm on January 7, 2014 and shall be opened on
the same day at 3.30 pm. Tender received after the
deadline for the submission shall be rejected.
Please note that bids will be rejected at the time of
opening if:
1. Integrity pact is not signed by authorized
person and witnesses
2. Bid bonds is not sufficient or not enclosed or
insufficient validity
3. Price schedule is not signed.
Detailed bidding documents can be downloaded from
DCCL website www.dccl.bt
For any enquiry, please contact Procurement Section
(Tel-07-481232)
General Manager, FAD
NOTICE INVITING TENDER
PHUENTSHOLING MUNICIPALITY
PT/Envt-2/2014-2015/12073
The Phuentsholing Thromde invites sealed bids from eligible and qualified bidders for
“Procurement of spare pumps and parts” with the engineer’s estimate amount of
Nu. 846,841.00 (Eight hundred forty six thousand eight hundred forty one) only
under the terms and conditions stated in tender document in sample form of NIT.
1. Date of sale of tender : 30/12/2014 to 24/01/2015 (During working hrs.)
2. Last date and time for submission of bids : 24/01/2015 at 13:00 hours
3. Cost of tender document : Nu. 700/- (Seven hundred) only,
non-refundable
4. Date of opening & venue : 24/01/2015 at 1430 hrs. in Phuentsholing
Thromde conference hall.
Further details are in tender document of contact # 05252877/252168.
Executive Secretary
NOTICE INVITING
CONSULTANCY SERVICE
BHUTAN INFOCOMM AND MEDIA
AUTHORITY
BICMA/PRO/2014-15/1148
The Bhutan InfoComm and Media Authority invites
sealed bids from eligible consultancy firm for up
gradation of online licencing System and Design &
Development of the website of this office.
The RFP document can be purchased from the
Authority’s office from December 26, 2014 till
January 26, 2015 during the office hours and shall
be submitted on or before 12 noon of January 27,
2015.
For details please visit www.bicma.gov.bt or visit
the office during office hours.
Director

11. Friday, December 26, 2014 | KUENSEL
ADVERTISEMENTPAGE 11
NOTICE INVITING TENDER
ROYAL UNIVERSITY OF BHUTAN
Jigme Namgyel Polytechnic, Dewathang
J.N.Poly/Procurement of Goods/Advertisement/2014/998
Interested and eligible firms are invited to bid for the supply of the following items to
Jigme Namgyel Polytechnic, Dewathang as per the details given below:
Sl.
#
Items for tender Last date & time of
tender submission
Opening date &
time
1 Civil laboratory equipment
February 3, 2015 at
9:00 am
February 3, 2015
at 9:00 am2 Electrical laboratory equipment
3 Mechanical laboratory equipment February 3, 2015
at 11:00 am4 Computers & peripherals
5 IT equipment February 3, 2015
at 1:00 pm6 Furniture
Bidding documents can be purchased from the Procurement Manager at Nu. 500/-
or can be downloaded from JNP website http://www.jnp.edu.bt/ and the cost
of tender document can be paid at the time of submission of bids. The bidding
documents will be available w.e.f December 27, 2014.
All the eligible bidders intending to participate in the above tenders are requested to
register with the institute at the earliest by filling in the form provided in the 1st page
of the bidding documents.
For further information, please contact us at 07-260302/260286.
Director
NOTICE INVITING TENDER
MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE AND FORESTS
Department of Forests & Park Services
Wildlife Conservation Division, Thimphu
WCD/Adm-08/2014/1784
Wildlife Conservation Division (WCD) under the Department of Forests & Park
Services would like to invite sealed bids from the eligible Bhutanese Supplier(s) having
valid trade licence for the supply and delivery of solar electric fencing materials and
general tools.
The tender document can be purchased from the Administration and Finance
Division, MoAF, Thimphu.
Date of sale of tender document : December 25, 2014 to January 25, 2015
Last submission date & time : January 26, 2015 at 1100 hrs.
Date & time of tender opening : January 26, 2015 at 1130 hrs.
Venue for the tender opening : Office of the Chief Forestry Officer,
Wildlife Conservation Division, DoFPS.
The bids addressed to Chief Forestry Office, Wildlife Conservation Division shall be
submitted latest by 11:00 am January 26, 2015. For further enquiry, contact at
+975-325042 (ext. 102)
Chief Forestry Officer
CORRIGENDUM
DZONGKHAG ADMINISTRATION,
MONGAR
Mongdzong/Proc-11/2014-2015/2941
Please refer to NIT no. Mongdzong/Proc-
II/2014-2015/2417 dated 26/11/2014 regarding
“construction of conference hall, classroom,
kitchen & dinning hall buildings at Drametse
Dzong, Mongar.” All perspective bidders are
requested to note changes in the ITB 1.1,16.1 & 16.2
ITB 1.1: The name and identification of the
contract is “Construction of conference
hall, classrooms, kitchen & dinning
hall buildings at Drametse Dzong,
Mongar”
ITB 16.1 & 16.2: Bid security amount should be
Nu. 922,000/-
Other terms & conditions remain same.
Dzongda
PUBLIC NOTIFICATION
MINISTRY OF HOME AND
CULTURAL AFFAIRS
Bureau of Law and Order
MoHCA/BLO(3)-2/8335
In the wake of the recent cases of extortion and
robbery of Bhutanese citizens in parts of Alipurduar
district, North Bengal, the Ministry of Home and
Cultural Affairs would like to request the general
public to exercise extreme caution while travelling in
the adjoining border areas.
Travellers are advised to take note of the following:
1. Travel in convoy/groups
2. Avoid stoppages en-route
3. Avoid carrying cash and expensive belongings
4. Render assistance to Bhutanese citizens in need of
help while travelling
5. Do not stop in the event of being followed by
suspicious vehicle
6. In the event of distress situations, immediately
contact the Indian police control room number 0091-
3561-225588 for
7. File First Information Report (FIR) immediately
to the nearest Indian police station incase further
investigation is required
or
Report the case to the RBP and seek their assistance
to file FIR with Indian Police
8. Keep record of International Mobile Equipment
Identity (IMEI) number of one’s mobile phone to
facilitate investigation. The IMEI number can be
obtained by dialing *#06#
The above advisory is being issued in the
interest of public safety.
Ministry of Home and Cultural Affairs
VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT
ROYAL INSURANCE CORPORATION OF BHUTAN
LIMITED, HEAD OFFICE, THIMPHU
No. RICB/GAD/HRD(01)HO/2014/7652
The Royal Insurance Corporation of Bhutan Limited is pleased to announce a
minimum of 39 vacant posts for various positions.
All interested applicants are requested to visit our website www.ricb.com.bt for
detailed information and other related criteria.
For further details, please contact the Human Resource Officer, Head Office,
Thimphu at 321161 ext. 330 or 351 during office hours. Management

12. Printed and published by Kuensel Corporation Limited, PO Box 204, Tel: 975-2-322483/324688, Fax: 975-2-322975, www.kuenselonline.com ISSN 0259 1499
KUENSEL | Friday, December 26, 2014
HOME
PAGE 12
ZAKAR
TOMORROW’S
Good day
laza
Max Min
Source: Meteorology Division, DHMS, MOEA,
For any weather information : call hotline 339673
WEATHER
DECEMBER 26, 2014
WWWWW
Picture story: Sixteen potential players were chosen from the winter
Taekwondo coaching camp in Phuentsholing to represent Chukha Dzongkhag
in the up coming 11th National Taekwondo Championship in Thimphu. In
collaboration with the Bhutan Taekwondo Federation and BOC, the Chukha
Dzongkhag Taekwondo Association organised the camp to mark the National Day
celebrations. It ended yesterday.
MB Subba
Thimphu city was briefly
under a thick blanket of
smoke yesterday when a for-
est fire that started opposite
Bap lhakhang raged on for
hours destroying more than
100 acres of blue pine forest.
About 300 people includ-
ing Desuups, members of
armed forces, forestry officials
and volunteers battled the fire
that burned for about eight
hours, completely gutting
hundreds of spices of shrubs,
rhododendron and chirpine
among others.
According to eyewit-
nesses the fire started around
10.30am near the house,
where the watch woman of
the School for Language and
Cultural Studies at Chang
Debsi lives.
One of the witnesses,
Dema, 59, said a child was
playing with a matchbox out-
side her house, which started
the fire.
“I had gone to see one of
my relatives at the hospital
when the incident occurred,”
she said. “The child’s mother
had also gone out to serve tea
to some people when the fire
started.
Dema said the child’s
mother, who is from
Tongzhang, Trashiyangtsi, is
a single mother.
However, Thimphu
dzongkhag forestry officer
(DFO), Phento Tshering said
the culprit is yet to be identi-
fied. “At this point we cannot
confirm that the child started
the fire,” he said. He said an
appropriate action would be
taken once the investigation
is over.
Phento Tshering said the
fire was in control as of yester-
day evening but officials will
closely monitor the situation.
An Indian national work-
ing at the school said people
from around rushed to con-
tain the fire but with the wind
fueling it, they couldn’t con-
tain it.
Meanwhile, some volun-
teers said they were poorly
equipped to fight the fire.
The forest fire management
section with the agriculture
ministry said farmers do not
have the proper equipment
to battle forest fires. Some
of them had water bags but
most of them fought the fire
either with tree branches or
bare hands.
An official said the envi-
ronmental damage caused
by such fires extends well
beyond the affected areas.
“Damage to biodiversity and
livelihoods may take decades
to reverse.”
Fires rank among the top
causes of damage to Bhutan’s
forests. For instance, there
were 36 incidences of forest
fires in 2010 alone, which
burned more than 9,162.81
acres of forests.
According to official data,
the second most common
cause of forest fire is due to
children playing with fire near
forests. Electric short circuits
also cause forest fires in the
country.
Paro, Thimphu, Puna-
kha, Wangduephodrang,
Lhuentse, Trashigang, and
Bumthang are prone to forest
fires, officials said.
Fire destroys more than 100 acres of forest
Volunteers battle the fire near the school for language and cultural studies where
the fire started
A child playing with a matchbox is alleged to have started the fire
FOREST FIRE
“At this point
we cannot
confirm that
the child
started the fire,”
Phento Tshering,
DFO,
Thimphu